Kallman Legal Group signs termination of services in Ottawa

OTTAWA COUNTY — According to an agenda posted by Ottawa County in advance of a Board of Commissioners meeting Tuesday, Feb. 25, the municipality’s at-times controversial corporation counsel has agreed to resign. 

In the chock-full agenda — which also includes expected actions on an agreement to fund restoration efforts at Crockery Lake and a resolution in support of delaying the closing of the Campbell Plant in Port Sheldon Township — item “R” says: “To approve the resolution to accept the resignation of Kallman Legal Group and to retain Dickinson Wright (Ronald Bultje) as Interim Corporation Counsel.” 

According to a proposed motion in the packet, KLG resigned Friday, Feb. 21. An attached agreement for termination of legal services, signed by David Kallman, says the county wishes to return to an employee model for corporation counsel, rather than contracting with a firm. 

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KLG, the document says, will be available for “consultation and other legal services” at a maximum of 24 hours per week at the firm’s standard rate until May 31. The firm waives all claims for any prior payments and unpaid invoices for 2025. 

Kallman Legal Group was hired during Ottawa Impact’s first majority meeting on Jan. 3, 2023, replacing longtime corporation counsel Doug Van Essen. 

During the firm’s two-year tenure with the county, KLG has overseen numerous legal quagmires, including a religious discrimination lawsuit, a wrongful termination lawsuit, alleged violations of the Open Meetings Act, and the months-long case between the Ottawa County Board and Health Officer Adeline Hambley, which ended in the retaining of her role. 

The wrongful termination lawsuit, filed by former administrator John Gibbs and settled for $190,000 in January, saw various allegations of incompetency against KLG. Those complaints and concerns, Gibbs argued, led to his firing.

Just over a month into KLG’s original contract, the firm’s agreement was amended to add a third year of services, running through Jan. 1, 2026. That amendment also added a “just cause” termination clause, tightening the contract so the board could only fire KLG for “gross negligence or criminal misconduct.”